Winter is upon us and it is that time of year again where you start to prepare the outside of your home for the winter months. There are 2 reasons on why it is important to clean your gutters before winter. First, with it being Fall, trees have dropped their leaves making their way on to your roof and into your gutters. This can cause structural damage to your home, once the leaves clog your gutters, it allows water from rain and snow to spill over the side that could lead to damaged siding and damage to the foundation.

The Second reason being, if water is trapped in the gutter and it freezes as the temperature drops, the ice can damage not only the gutter but the roof as well leading to potential leaks in the future.

The first step is to find a sturdy ladder, this will give you the opportunity to clean the gutters of all the leaves and accumulated gook. There are a variety of products that can keep the leaves out of the gutters. There are gutters with built-in covers and ones that attempt to prevent leaves from washing off the roof into the gutters. If you are continually dealing with your gutters filling up with leaves, there are screens that you can purchase to help prevent that from happening as often.

While you are cleaning the gutters, it is a good idea to inspect the gutters for any damage that could already be problematic. Typical problems to look for are holes, steel gutters that have rusted through, holes from branches that have made their way through the aluminum or copper gutters.

With Winter already being here, there is a way to help prevent ice from forming on the roof, damaging the house and gutters. For this you can use a deicing cable. It assures that an “ice dam” does not form along the roof during the winter when snow and ice tend to cluster. You attach the cable along the edge of the roof in a zigzag pattern with clips and you can plug the cord into a regular outlet.

It initially helps generates heat, making sure any melting ice and snow has a clear path to the gutter and away from the house. You can also take an old pair of panty hose, fill it with salt you would use on a sidewalk. You can place the panty hose and salt on the roof intersecting the gutter, and it will give water a path to travel down off the roof if your gutter fills with ice.

These are just some tips and trips to help preserve your roof and gutters during the Winter months. We hope this helps keep your maintenance down to a minimum this year. If you are in need for a gutter service in Colorado Springs – always free to call us at: (719) 464-8945.